Elizabeth Taylor, A Bright Star During the Dark Days of AIDS

Those of us who were part of the LGBT community during the early days of AIDS had precious little to hold on to for hope. Our brothers were dying at unbelieveable rates, there was no effective treatment for the myriad diseases striking down the handsome young men. Latina women had a life expectancy of 28 days from time of diagnosis until death. Communities were being wiped out in record speed.

We had a President who would not say AIDS, a public health system which was inadequate for the breadth and depth of the epidemic. Many volumes have been written about this dark time. I won’t add much more here except to say there are places in my heart that will be never be the same after watching so many I loved die so quickly and so young.

In the midst of all this disaster emerged a story from Hollywood. Headlines reported Rock Hudson had AIDS. Then he was dead after going to France to get an experimental treatment that failed. The gasps were audible from the movie going public.

Wasn’t he just on Dynasty? Did he infect Linda Evans from kissing her? How did he get it? Wait, what? He got it how? In those days, people were obsessed with knowing the method of transmission for the infection.(I have run into people who are still concerned that heterosexuals with HIV not get tainted by the broad gay brush of incrimination. Breathtaking!)

From this set emerged Dame Elizabeth Taylor, AIDS activist. She realized that she could lend her name to the fight against AIDS. Ms Taylor became a true star, saying AIDS over and over and over again. She normalized so many conversations about the disease. She was one of the founders of American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) as well as The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. During this time of her career, she raised millions of dollars to provide research about AIDS.

As many have recounted in their memories of her, she also provided financial support for small things like a tv, VCR and movies patients on the AIDS ward at SF General. There is an AIDS clinic in Washington D.C. which bears her name.

I cannot underline enough what her presence as an advocate did for us on the front lines. I remember thinking that finally someone wasn’t afraid of a person living with AIDS. Finally something will change And change it did. We could point to her commitment and grab on to the little shred of hope she offered. We could get money for our organizations through both foundations. There were more people caring and helping our fellow citizens living with HIV. Even maybe, we could hope for a cure.

<In the darkest of times, her light shone bright on to all the loss and pain, the hopelessness and grief. From that light we could find a path out of the darkness.